[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37767-37769]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16517]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 1750


Statement of Policy on Enforcement Discretion Regarding General 
Conformity Certificates for the Requirements of the Refrigerator Safety 
Act

AGENCY: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Statement of enforcement policy.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is issuing a 
Statement of Policy regarding the CPSC's enforcement of the requirement 
for a general conformity assessment certificate regarding CPSC's 
standard for household refrigerators. CPSC will not enforce the 
requirements to issue a general certificate of conformity for household 
refrigerators if the product displays an appropriate safety 
certification mark indicating compliance.

DATES: Effective August 2, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Troy W. Whitfield, Lead Compliance 
Officer, the Office of Compliance and Field Operations, U.S. Consumer 
Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Hwy., Bethesda, MD 20814; 
telephone: 301-504-7548; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CPSC \1\ is issuing a Statement of 
Policy regarding the CPSC's enforcement of the requirement for a 
general conformity assessment certificate regarding CPSC's standard for 
household refrigerators.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The Commission voted 3-2 to publish this notice in the 
Federal Register. Acting Chairman Anne Marie Buerkle and 
Commissioners Dana Baiocco and Peter A. Feldman voted to publish 
this notice. Commissioners Robert S. Adler and Elliot F. Kaye voted 
against publication of this notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

A. Background

1. Refrigerator Safety Act and Implementing Regulation

    The Refrigerator Safety Act (RSA) was enacted on August 2, 1956 to 
prevent deaths of young children who could become trapped inside of a 
household refrigerator and suffocate. 15 U.S.C. 1211-14. When the RSA 
was enacted, household refrigerators were typically equipped with 
external latches that held the refrigerator door shut when not in use.
    To prevent accidental entrapment of children, the RSA requires 
household refrigerators to have a device that enables the household 
refrigerator door to be opened easily from the inside. The regulation 
implementing the RSA, 16 CFR part 1750, describes in detail the 
requirements and minimum releasing forces for household refrigerators. 
Part 1750 applies to household refrigerators manufactured and 
introduced into interstate commerce after October 30, 1958. The 
regulation requires devices to allow household refrigerators to be 
opened from the inside while the household refrigerator is in its 
normal operating position. This is accomplished by applying an 
outwardly directed force to the inside of the door, or by rotating a 
knob, similar to a conventional doorknob, that meets certain activation 
force requirements. The device must function automatically, and it must 
work whether or not the refrigerator has electrical power. Normal use 
of the product must not affect compliance with the anti-entrapment 
requirement.

2. Voluntary Standard for Refrigerators

    The current voluntary standard for refrigerator safety is 
Underwriters Laboratories Standard 60335-2-24 (UL 60335-2-24), 
Household and Similar Electrical Appliances--Safety--Part 2-24: 
Particular Requirements for Refrigerating Appliances, Ice-Cream 
Appliances and Ice-Makers. UL 60335-2-24 includes the entrapment 
protection requirements of 16 CFR part 1750 for household refrigerators 
sold in the United States.
    The 2017 Edition of the National Electrical Code[supreg] 
(NEC[supreg]) requires all appliances operating at 50 volts or more to 
be listed, which means that all refrigerators must certified to the 
requirements of UL 60335-2-24. Although compliance with the NEC[supreg] 
is not a federal requirement, the NEC[supreg] has been widely adopted 
by states and local jurisdictions.\2\ Because failure to comply with 
the NEC[supreg] would limit market share, due to restrictions on where 
the products could be installed, and because manufacturers would expose 
themselves to additional liability if their products do not meet the 
applicable voluntary standards, it is likely that all refrigerators 
have been certified for compliance with UL 60335-2-24.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ https://www.nema.org/Technical/FieldReps/Documents/Adoption%20of%20the%20National%20Electrical%20Code%20by%20State%20or%20local%20jurisdiction.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. Requirement for General Conformity Certificate

    Section 14(a)(1) of the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA), as 
amended by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), 
requires that all manufacturers of consumer products ``subject to a 
consumer product safety rule under this Act or similar rule, ban, 
standard, or regulation under any other Act enforced by the 
Commission'' and that are imported or distributed in commerce, must 
issue a general certificate of conformity (GCC) certifying that ``based 
on a test of each product or upon a reasonable testing program, that 
such product complies with all rules, bans, standards, or regulations 
applicable to the product.'' 15 U.S.C. 2063(a)(1).

4. CPSC Request for Comments on Burden Reduction

    In 2017, CPSC published a Federal Register notice asking for 
suggestions from stakeholders on ways to reduce regulatory burdens.\3\ 
In response, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) 
requested that CPSC issue a statement of enforcement discretion 
indicating that CPSC would not enforce the requirements to issue a GCC 
for household refrigerators if the

[[Page 37768]]

product complied with the requirements of the RSA and if the product 
displayed a safety certification mark indicating compliance with UL 
60335-2-24.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/03/01/2018-04129/commission-agenda-and-priorities-notice-of-hearing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

B. Rationale for Enforcement Discretion

1. Market Survey

    In February 2019, CPSC staff conducted a limited market survey to 
determine the number of household refrigerators for retail sale that 
displayed a safety certification mark. Staff found that 38 of 38 
household refrigerators surveyed displayed a safety certification mark, 
indicating that 100 percent of household refrigerators surveyed were 
certified to comply with UL 60335-2-24, and therefore, the entrapment 
prevention requirements of the RSA as well.

2. Incident Data

    CPSC staff searched the Consumer Product Safety Risk Management 
System (CPSRMS) and the Medical Examiners and Coroners Alert Project 
(MECAP) databases for the period covering January 1, 2000 to January 
31, 2019, and found no entrapment deaths involving household 
refrigerators. CPSC staff searched the non-fatal reports in CPSRMS, 
using keyword search due to the large amount data, for the period 
covering January 1, 2000 to January 31, 2019 and found one entrapment 
incident within the scope of the RSA in June of 2000, which resulted in 
no injuries. In that incident, a 2-year-old male, apparently unaided, 
climbed into a refrigerator and the door closed behind him, but he was 
found before suffering any injury.
    CPSC staff also searched the National Electronic Injury 
Surveillance System (NEISS) database for the period covering January 1, 
2000 to December 31, 2017, using a keyword search due to the large 
amount data, and found no entrapment deaths or injuries involving 
household refrigerators.

3. Compliance Activity

    CPSC Compliance staff reviewed the Section 15 (Defects) Dynamic 
Case Management system (DCM), the legacy files database, and the 
Integrated Field System (IFS) database. There were a total of 73 
refrigerator cases in the Section 15 database dating back to 1974. 
These cases concerned electrical issues, overheating components, 
component part failures, and refrigerant leaks. Staff found no cases 
that involved entrapment in household refrigerators. Thus, CPSC has not 
had any enforcement cases or recalls of household refrigerators related 
to noncompliance with the RSA since enforcement of the RSA was 
transferred to CPSC in 1973.

4. Safety Mark

    Safety certification bodies, such as UL, authorize a product to 
bear their safety certification or listing mark based on a 
determination by the certification body that the product meets widely 
accepted standards.\4\ Household refrigerators display a safety 
certification mark indicating that the product meets the entrapment 
safety requirements in UL 60335-2-24, which include the entrapment 
safety requirements in the RSA. Several certification bodies issue 
safety certification marks indicating compliance with UL 60335-2-24. We 
are aware of UL, the CSA Group that issues the CSA safety certification 
mark, and Intertek, which issues the ETL safety certification mark \5\ 
as examples of acceptable safety certification marks demonstrating 
compliance with UL 60335-2-24. However, for purposes of this 
enforcement policy, the Commission will accept a safety certification 
mark from any Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory that is listed 
by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration as meeting the 
requirements under 29 CFR 1910.7,\6\ and if UL 60335-2-24 is one the 
Recognized Testing Standards as an indication that the refrigerator 
meets the RSA and 16 CFR part 1750.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ https://www.ul.com/marks/ul-listing-and-classification-marks/promotion-and-advertising-guidelines/specific-guidelines-and-rules/?.
    \5\ http://www.intertek.com/marks/etl/.
    \6\ https://www.osha.gov/dts/otpca/nrtl/nrtllist.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Certification bodies prohibit display of their safety certification 
marks on products that they have not determined meet UL 60335-2-24. 
Products that display the certification mark are certified to meet the 
entrapment requirements in the RSA and 16 CFR part 1750. This safety 
certification mark is readily visible to CPSC staff, U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection, retailers, and consumers, because it is prominently 
displayed on the product. Because it is industry practice to certify 
household refrigerators to UL 60335-2-24, household refrigerators will 
be tested to the requirements in the RSA and 16 CFR part 1750.

5. Cost of Issuing GCC for the Refrigerator Safety Act

    To produce and distribute GCCs, manufacturers and importers incur 
some costs. The manufacturer or importer must collect the information 
that is required to be on the certificate. The certificate 
incorporating this information must be generated and furnished to each 
distributor or retailer (and to the Commission, if requested), and the 
certificate must be retained on file for each model manufactured or 
imported. In addition to the direct costs associated with generating 
and distributing each certificate, manufacturers and importers: (1) 
Need to develop internal procedures to ensure that the necessary 
information is sent to employees who are responsible for generating the 
certificates and the employees responsible for distributing the 
certificates; (2) these procedures must be reviewed to ensure that they 
will result in compliance with the legal requirements for the content 
and distribution of general conformity certificates; and (3) the 
employees must be provided guidance or training for following these 
procedures.
    CPSC staff estimates the cost of issuing and distributing a GCC per 
model would be $51.75 to $103.50 per model. The costs in question are 
incurred solely to issue a GCC, which provides the same entrapment 
prevention compliance information as the safety certification mark.

6. Conclusion

    As discussed above, the following information indicates that 
household refrigerators bearing a safety certification mark will meet 
the entrapment prevention requirements of the RSA:
     Review of CPSC's databases covering the past 20 years 
found no reported refrigerator-entrapment fatalities;
     CPSC has not had any recalls or compliance cases since 
taking over the RSA in 1973; and
     Staff's limited market survey indicates a high level of 
compliance with the voluntary standard, and indicates that 
refrigerators that bear a listing mark to UL 60335-2-24 will meet the 
entrapment prevention requirements of the RSA.
    This statement of policy could reduce costs manufacturers and 
importers incur when issuing and distributing a GCC, while maintaining 
the safety protection the RSA provides. Thus, a safety certification 
mark indicating compliance with UL 60335-2-24 is an appropriate proxy 
for a GCC indicating compliance with RSA and 16 CFR part 1750. 
Therefore, the Commission determines that enforcement of the 
requirement for issuance of a GCC for household refrigerators is 
unnecessary because when the household refrigerators bear an 
appropriate safety certification mark that indicates compliance with UL 
60335-2-24, the

[[Page 37769]]

safety certification mark also indicates that the product will be 
compliant with the CPSC mandatory requirements for household 
refrigerators.

C. Statement of Enforcement Policy

    The Commission is exercising the following enforcement discretion: 
Effective August 2, 2019, the Commission will not pursue compliance or 
enforcement actions against manufacturers, importers or private 
labelers of household refrigerators for failure to issue, provide, or 
make available to the Commission a GCC, as required by 15 U.S.C. 
2063(a)(1), provided that the product bears an appropriate safety 
certification mark indicating compliance with UL Standard 60335-2-24. 
Household refrigerators must still comply with all requirements under 
the RSA and 16 CFR part 1750. Failure to comply with the RSA and 16 CFR 
part 1750 will still subject the products to enforcement action.
    This statement of policy, and the enforcement discretion described 
here, is limited to certificates required for the RSA and 16 CFR part 
1750. If a household refrigerator does not bear an appropriate safety 
mark indicating compliance with UL Standard 60335-2-24, none of this 
policy, the enforcement discretion described in this policy, nor the 
implications of such enforcement discretion shall apply. Any 
misrepresentation or omission regarding a household refrigerator 
bearing a safety mark indicating compliance with UL Standard 60335-2-24 
could subject the firm to compliance or enforcement action and 
potential civil and/or criminal penalties. Should the Commission become 
aware of unsafe products entering the market as a result of this 
statement of policy, it reserves the right to withdraw the policy 
prospectively with no less than 90 days' notice. This policy is not a 
binding rule and does not change any person's right, duties, or 
obligations under any statutes administered by the CPSC.

Alberta E. Mills,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2019-16517 Filed 8-1-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6355-01-P